It turns out that copyright in the architectural drawings of the stadium were assigned to the City of Cape Town and the City’s ban on photos of the stadium are basically based on copyright protection. Commercial photos of the stadium will fall foul of the City’s rights. On the other hand, if you take photos that qualify for fair dealing protection under the Copyright Act (for example, for your personal use) then you should be able to sidestep the prohibition.

The reason for this (and similar) bans is probably to protect revenue the City earns from tourism involving the stadium. I don’t agree with the strategy, I believe that allowing people to take photos of the stadium (commercial or private) and sharing those photos widely will only encourage more tourism and more revenue from that tourism derived from ancillary products and services.

Another possible excuse for a photo that includes the stadium is if the stadium is incidental to the photo as a whole. Drawing a clear line between incidental inclusion of the stadium and taking an otherwise prohibited photo of the stadium will likely be pretty tricky.

Next time you are in Cape Town, bear this prohibition in mind if you intend taking photos you’d like to sell some day. Perhaps focus your attention on other aspects of the city and its environs, just to be on the safe side.